


The Water We Can't Get Above

by TimeInABottle



Category: SKAM (TV)
Genre: (technically) - Freeform, Angst, Fluff, M/M, Plenty of scientific inaccuracy, Roommates, Slow Burn, and pretty much everyone else
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-17
Updated: 2017-12-17
Packaged: 2019-02-16 05:10:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13047165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimeInABottle/pseuds/TimeInABottle
Summary: Isak has spent most of his adult life focusing on his work, and for the past three years he has been a part of the Norwegian Polar Institute's research team in Antarctica. Holed up in a small housing unit, miles away from any of the other researchers, he spends his days in peaceful solitude.Which is why Isak is far from happy when his boss tells him a documentary crew will be joining them soon, and that he is expected to share his living quarters with one of the cameramen.





	The Water We Can't Get Above

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from Sirens by DA & The Jones, which also heavily served as the inspiration for this story. (Or essentially, I was in the shower listening to this song and all I could think about was Isak the scientist and Even the filmmaker stuck together in a cabin on ice).
> 
> There will probably be many scientific (and geographic and meteorological and most likely historical) inaccuracies ahead, so please read all of the science-y bits with several grains of salt. Though feel free to tell me about all the ways I'm terribly wrong because I love learning new things and geeking out over biology. 
> 
> The Norwegian Polar Institute actually has a research station in Antarctica, and yes, it's actually called Troll, and yes, I actually decided to keep the ugly name. They also have a smaller unit called Tol that is also mentioned in this story. 
> 
> Just a warning that there's no Even in this chapter because it's just a prologue. I've had this saved in my drafts since March and I've been obsessing over this universe for months, so I hope you enjoy it!

When Eskild called Isak's radio line and told him their boss Håvard wanted to talk to him on Skype, Isak didn't expect anything out of the ordinary. He figured he would update Håvard on his research, do a routine equipment check, and maybe bring up the new tagging system he read about in the Ornithology journal.

 _This_... This was not part of the plan.

"Absolutely not. No fucking way!" Isak shouts at his computer screen for what feels like the hundredth time. If he was thinking clearly, perhaps he would be more cautious of swearing at the man who holds Isak's career in his hands, but he is _furious_.

Isak picked Troll Research Station over Jang Bogo with the South Koreans (which is built like a five star hotel) and Taishan with the Chinese (close to unlimited funding and technology that _almost_ makes him tear up), because of the promise of one simple thing. _Solitude._

When he resigned from his research team at MIT, the Norwegian Polar Institute essentially handed him a blank check to have him on board at Troll. However, Isak didn't care about the money, there were plenty of research teams that offered him higher pay. What he wanted was his own private space to live in and spend his days analyzing his data. After everything he went through he just wanted to be on his own and work, free of any distractions or complications.

At first the Institute insisted it was impossible, that Isak would have to live in the main housing unit among seven other scientists, but he didn't budge from his terms. Eventually, they agreed to convert one of the remote equipment shacks into a very small housing unit (" _I don't care if it's a tent as long as it's my own_ "), which had two bedrooms due to regulations that prohibited single-bedroom living hubs. The second bedroom was supposed to stay empty as long as Isak lived there. _Supposed_ to.

"Not only do you want to give my room away, you want to give it to a _cameraman_. Not even a research assistant or a technician! A _cameraman_!" He was on the verge of sounding hysterical, but company and change were two of the things he hated the most, and his boss was trying to force both on him. 

"Isak, you’re being unreasonable," Håvard's voice rang through the computer, "if you want to abandon all of your ongoing research because you can't share, be my guest, but we're doing great work here. We don't restrict your work outside of IRB regulations. We provide you with all of the resources you ask for. All I'm asking for in return is that you let someone shadow you for a little while.”

"Why can't he stay in the main hub with the others?” he pleads.

“The girl will be staying with the gang-" Isak hated it when Håvard called them 'the gang', "-and Vilde and Linn will cover oceanography, but no one here knows marine life and arctic ornithology better than you do. If we don’t reflect your work on film, we will only be showing a third of our research.”

"We have more than enough funding, we don't need a documentary crew following us around for extra cash! What happened to scientific integrity?"

“Isak, you can’t keep pulling the scientific integrity card every time something you don’t approve of happens.”

“I don’t do that!” Isak sputters, “I have never done that.”

“Last week when you told me I was jeopardizing the sanctity of our research by refusing to send you those disgusting boxes of noodles you eat were you truly concerned about scientific integrity?”

“Yes!”

“And two months ago when I asked you to attend the group meetings in the main hub and you accused me of trying to make the Antarctic petrel population go extinct that was…”

“Out of genuine concern for the species’ wellbeing!” Isak scoffs. It should be obvious to Håvard that every second he spends in the team's presence (especially Elias and Nikolai's, who manage to act like they are in a fraternity _thousands of miles away from any existing fraternity_ ) is a second wasted he could be using on research instead. 

“Isak, look…" Håvard takes a deep breath before continuing, "we don’t need the funding, but we need the publicity. It’s hard enough to get people to care about what’s going on outside of their neighborhood, let alone in Antarctica. We need to get people talking about the danger this ecosystem faces. Our articles do an excellent job of informing the scientific community, but outside of our small group of researchers, no one gives a shit. This documentary crew has done amazing work in the past, and they can help start a conversation. They can get people to phone up politicians and demand change, demand stricter environmental regulations and harsher prohibitions. We can’t pass this opportunity up...”

As much as he hates it, Isak knows Håvard is right. No matter how much research he does, no matter how concrete the evidence is, people don’t care about information that isn’t packaged for easy consumption, preferably set to popular music and featuring cute animals. A Facebook-friendly version of Isak's research could open a lot of doors.

When Isak was just getting started on his doctoral thesis, he didn't care if people outside of the scientific community were too ignorant to understand the gravity of his line of research. At no point in his academic life did he sign a contract agreeing to suck up to businessmen and politicians, or to explain his work to middle-aged suburban parents. As far as he was concerned, he was doing his part, and it was up to everyone else to do their part and take a minute to read the abstract of papers he had spent months perfecting. 

Over the years, he has seen too many of his articles ignored and far too many animals suffer because of it to continue being that naive. 

“If I agree to this-“ he squints his eyes, knowing full well at this point that he is going to say yes, but still wanting to milk the deal as much as he can, “I want unlimited use of the biomedical storage unit at Tol."

“Done" Håvard says, barely blinking before he agrees. 

"I mean it. Elias and Nikolai use it to store personal shit they should be keeping in the main hangar. I want all of it gone."

"I'll talk to them and Eskild, you have my word. The unit’s yours.“

"And you'll look into getting budget approval for the OWT tags..."

"I'm working on it" he says, and Isak can see him jot it down on the leather-bound notebook he carries with him at all times.

"And my ramen?"

"Yes, Isak,” he says with an eyeroll, “you'll get your ramen with the next shipment.”

Isak takes a deep breath, bracing himself for the words about to leave his lips. “I’ll agree to it for a trial period. If it doesn't work out, you'll send him to the Swedish."

“Ok, a trial period of six months.”

"One month."

"Four months."

"Two. Maximum” Isak says with certainty.

"Deal. He’ll be there in three weeks. Thank you for being something close to agreeable for once."

"Don't get used to it."

"Don't tell the others how much I spoil you” Håvard teases.

"I'll try not to bring it up in our many, extensive conversations."

"It wouldn't kill you to talk to them every once in a while, Isak. People need people. Especially over there."

"I've been here on my own for 3 years and I'm doing just fine.” he says as he ends the Skype call and leans back in his chair, taking a deep breath.

He is.

He is doing just fine.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! This was just the prologue so nothing really happened, but I hope to post the first chapter in the next few weeks. I don't know if I can do this universe justice, but it's one I've loved thinking about, and I know I'll never motivate myself to write more unless I start posting, so I mostly just wanted to get this out there.
> 
> You can find me on Twitter at @pannaesheim!


End file.
